


Part Two - Space

by doctor_badass, sweaterstiel



Series: The Next Generation [2]
Category: Doctor Who, Merlin (TV), Sherlock (TV), Supernatural
Genre: Parentlock, Superwholock, Superwhomerlock
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-24
Updated: 2013-10-23
Packaged: 2017-12-30 07:50:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 13,502
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1016017
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/doctor_badass/pseuds/doctor_badass, https://archiveofourown.org/users/sweaterstiel/pseuds/sweaterstiel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Basically, Jophiel Winchester steals the T.A.R.D.I.S. Or maybe it steals her. Either way, Mithya Pendragon hops a ride, and mad crazy space adventures are had. </p><p>Part Two of The Next Generation series, y'all!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Rebel Grrl

As Dean Winchester casually slid his completely realistic and completely fake I.D. across the grimy counter, the obese, bearded man that ran the motel raised an eyebrow. The name on it read “Hector Afranian” and sported a picture of Dean, wearing his signature “How could you possibly resist me?” smile. Which was exactly the smile he was wearing now. 

Exhaling through his nose, the man nodded him through, pushing the I.D. and room key towards Dean quickly, as though he just wanted to be rid of him already. The man had seen enough in his many years running the dusty roadside motel, and a man with a clearly fake identity was nothing new. He just wanted him out of his sight as soon as possible so he could get back to reading the month’s issue of “Hustler.” 

Spotting the poorly hidden magazine on the table behind the man, Dean nodded understandingly, then shoved his belongings in his back pocket. Grabbing his single suitcase, he looked out the front windows to where his pride and joy, the Impala, rested, alone in the small parking lot. 

In the car, Castiel crouched in the passenger seat, unseen by Dean. Peeking over the dashboard, he saw Dean exit the lobby and walk towards the car. Turning to the backseat, he nudged his sleeping daughter, Jophiel, who had fallen asleep with her large headphones on her ears, still audibly blasting The Rolling Stones. Dean got in, smiling at Castiel.

“We’re in!” he crowed, triumphant over winning a game between the three of them he had succeeded at many times, in which they bet over whether or not the manager would call the police on them. Several times, they had had to sit in a ditch for hours at a time in order to escape the authorities. 

Looking back at their daughter, Dean frowned. “How many goddamn times have I preached to her the many benefits of Metallica?” Castiel laughed, having heard that speech many times himself. 

Pulling into the space in front of their room, Castiel once again prodded Jophiel in the hopes of waking her up, in order to tell her the news that she now owed Dean three dollars.

“Do you think she would wake up if I turned off her music?” he sighed. “It would take a tornado to get her up on days like this.”

“Well, we might be in luck, then,” Dean said, pointing to the brewing storm coming across the Kansas plains. Finally succeeding in waking Jophiel up, Castiel and Dean collected their sparse luggage from the backseat, as their trunk was filled with weapons, and the trio ran against the howling wind to the shelter of the room.

Once inside, Jophiel prowled the room, taking pictures of the peeling wallpaper and moth-ridden furniture as Dean collapsed into a chair to flip through the limited channels and Castiel threw their luggage onto the bed.

“Well, as Sherlock would say, I have officially made the deduction that this place totally blows,” Jophiel stated, curling up into a ball on the floor, hugging her camera to her chest.

“What’s new, idjit?” Dean muttered, using the endearing nickname that Bobby had used on him so many times. At this, Jophiel abruptly uncurled herself and stood, facing her fathers.

“Nothing,” she said, her voice eerily monotone. “Absolutely nothing is new. Nothing is ever new in this life, and nothing ever will be.”  Dean and Castiel stared at her, frozen in what they were doing before.

“Every day, it’s the same bloody rubbish,” she continued, using some language she had picked up from Hamish. “I wake up in some nearly abandoned motel room, and sit around while the two of you research something weird, and then you run off to kill it.” The only sound in the room was Jophiel’s soft voice and the patterns of heavy rain on the roof.

“Jophiel, we’ve tried to include you in everything-” Castiel started gently. Jophiel suddenly snapped out of her monotone and turned to face him.

“What, you mean by having me throw matches at dead bodies? Because, despite what most teenage boys may think, it’s not very exciting to kill dead people,” she said, her voice steadily rising. “In fact, I consider myself to be the most under appreciated person in the business. I had to learn how to drive at twelve so I could sit in the car while you ran about in some scary maze, and then drive you to the nearest hospital or something when you came out with your leg nearly chopped off.” 

“And don’t,” she went on, “mention the Doctor, because all I do when we go out with _him_ is sit in the T.A.R.D.I.S, which has made time travel actually _unpleasant_ for me.”

“I don’t know who has been feeding you this garbage,” Dean said in a low, dangerous voice. “But I know that when I find them, they’ll pay for brainwashing you with so many goddamn lies.”

“No one’s been ‘feeding me this garbage’,” she screamed. “ _Because I don’t have any friends_!” With this violent outburst, she ran for the door, unlocked it frighteningly fast, and sprinted outside.

The winds whipped at her as she ran, causing her long, loose hair to nearly strangle her. She tripped several times in the now muddy parking lot, scraping her bare legs and arms, which were exposed due to her short overalls, appropriate for a blistering Kansas day, but not so for a flash storm. She climbed the fence that separated the deserted highway from the motel, then made the final dash across the road to the open plains beyond. Falling into the deep mud for the last time,  Jophiel tried to catch her breath as she stayed on her hands and knees, staring down at her scraped arms. Her rings, which had so many wonderful memories for her, were dulled by the dirt that coated her hands. She was utterly alone, as always.

“Ah, all right then,” called a familiar voice over the storm. She glanced up, surprised. “What, exactly, are you doing in the pouring rain, and where, may I ask, are your fathers?” the Doctor said, grinning as her extended a long, skinny, hand towards the lost girl.


	2. Gypsies

The Doctor, oblivious to the wet conditions around him, desperately tried to explain to Jophiel what was going on, yelling over the gale. Jophiel stood, crossing her bare arms, wet hair plastered to her face, ankle deep in mud, and listened to the only person in the universe who treated her like an adult.

“The T.A.R.D.I.S. has brought me here for some reason,” the wonderful traveler shouted. “I’ve been poking around town, trying to find anything suspicious. But there was nothing. Literally, nothing. This is a dreadfully boring town.” Jophiel thought that if a man who had seen all of time and space thought that a place was boring, that was saying something.

“So I called up Sherlock- Hamish and Molly say hello, by the way,” he explained, chuckling. “And he thought that there was something important happening in someone close to me’s timeline. The only people I know who are insane enough to go to a place like this in this weather are you three, so, here I am!”

“Well, there’s most certainly not anything exciting _or_ important happening in my life at the moment, so you’ll want my dads,” Jophiel shouted, attempting to push her uncontrollable hair out of her face.

“Let’s pay them a visit, then!” the Doctor cried happily, offering her his arm. But she stepped back.

“You must think I’m mad if you expect me to go in that horrid place again,” she stubbornly said. The Doctor had seen this headstrong side of Jophiel before, and knew that the only person who dared cross her in this state was Dean, who she seemed unwilling to see at the moment.

“Can you just wait out here, then?” he said. “I can tell them you’re suffering through an early-life crisis!” Jophiel smiled at him, then opened her arms for a hug. Ignoring the rainwater and mud dripping off of the girl, the Doctor wrapped his arms around her, resting his head on top of hers.

 

Jophiel smiled a bit sadly as she watched one of her favorite people walk away, knowing that what she did was completely wrong, and that it went against everything her fathers had taught her. But, at the moment, she was imagining that she was a traveling gypsy orphan who had no morals, which was much more exciting than the reality.

Spying the T.A.R.D.I.S. about a half-mile away, she began to run, glad that her fathers- no, her gypsy friends, had her exercise whenever possible. As she ran, she built up the life which she imagined would be ideal for a free spirit such as herself. Traveling deserted roads by day, lighting fires and dancing all night. The gypsies would dress her in only the finest garb, and she would have plenty of nomad boys to snog (another word she picked up from Hamish).

Reaching the blue box , she fished the key she had stolen from that particular madman who owned it out of her overall pocket. Once again glad of the gypsies teaching her how to pickpocket, she tried the key in the lock. She closed her eyes, took a breath, and turned it, knowing that the T.A.R.D.I.S. never let in anyone she didn’t feel was worthy. 

Fortunately, she recognized Jophiel, and let her in. Jo beamed, skipping down the walkway that led to the console. As she delightedly grasped the various handles, running her hands over their various buttons and knobs and strange little contraptions, she realized she had forgotten to close the door. The wind still blew on outside, letting the now-frozen rain inside the ship. 

She turned to go back and close it, but, strangely, it shut by itself. _Maybe the wind blew it closed_ , she thought, but then used her deduction skills to register the conclusion that the wind would have blown it open, not closed. Just as she came to this ominous verdict, the engine of the great machine started up.

 

“And so I’ve been...err..sniffing about, not literally, of course, but, you see-” the Doctor attempted to explain to a frantic Dean, who was loading his rifle, and Castiel, who was pulling on his coat.

“Look, Doc, we appreciate your help and all, but our daughter’s out there and there’s a tornado about to sweep this whole damn town away,” Dean yelled while rushing to help Castiel with his coat, who wore an expression of extreme concern.

“Yes, well, this may be..um..important, you see, and-” he struggled to find the words, waving his hands in a circular pattern to illustrate the direness of the situation. “If you could accompany me to the T.A.R.D.I.S. you could know for sure if-” He abruptly halted, his hand frozen on his coat pocket. 

Castiel and Dean stopped, amazed by the sudden end to the constant flow of speech coming from the traveler’s mouth. “Are you all right there, Doctor?” Castiel asked, his face now stuck in one of worry.

“It..it appears that she’s stolen the T.A.R.D.I.S. key,” he stammered, shocked beyond belief.

“What... _Jo?_ ” Dean demanded in a voice he did not use very often. But the words had scarcely left his lips when, over the sounds of the thrashing storm, the engine of the T.A.R.D.I.S. echoed across the Kansas plains.

 


	3. Walt Disney Will Kill You

Having sat in the backseat of an Impala during most of the more exciting events of her life, Jophiel had absolutely no idea what to do when an adventure like this came along. Thrown to the ground by the violent rocking of the T.A.R.D.I.S. as it hurtled though time and space to who-knows-where, Jophiel realized that the best option would be to wait until the thing finally landed, poke around a bit outside, and then spend the rest of her life growing old and fighting bad space things in general. Maybe she would even take on a sexy male companion, just like Rory or Captain Jack!

Jophiel was jarred for a second time as the T.A.R.D.I.S. finally reached its destination. Pushing herself off of the cold metal floor, she stumbled to the door, feeling as if she were about to see her see her Sloppy Joe for the second time that day. Leaning against the blue wood, she pressed her ear to it, making sure the area was safe, just as the wise old gypsy woman had taught her. _Oh, buggers,_ she thought, using a Hamish word. _I didn’t leave at all, because it’s still bloody raining._

Opening the door with extremely low expectations, she was shocked to uncover not the dreary Kansas landscape, but a large field, bordered by a forest and a medieval castle.

“Oh, cats,” Jophiel sighed. “I’m in Disneyland, aren’t I?” 

 

The girl, crouched in the branches of a tree, smiled at the overcast sky and reached her hand out to feel the splashing of the rain she loved so much. She relished these moments, alone in the forest, knowing that her brother would be too preoccupied with picking herbs to come and bother her. He was good company, but he would go mad if he had to sit in a tree all day. 

Closing her eyes, Mithya Pendragon pictured her gypsy friends, who had visited Camelot last week. She let herself imagine that her fathers allowed her to travel with them, visiting all of the great kingdoms of England. In her fantasy, the wet weather had forced them to set up camp under the protection of the trees. She could almost hear the bustle of the group as they tried to start a fire to cook their meal with. She could even hear their fantastical machines crash landing in a nearby field.

“What?” she shouted, her eyes flying open to see the mysterious blue box that had haunted her with its secrets for so long plow into the meadow that lay on the outskirts of Camelot. She gaped, unbelieving as the T.A.R.D.I.S. finally came to a rest at the end of a long line of skid marks on the ground.

“Mithya! Mithya Pendragon!” someone called from within the forest. Looking back, Mithya caught a glimpse of her brother, Will, as he walked through the trees. Inhaling sharply, she realized she was to make a very important decision. Would she satisfy her curiosity and investigate the blue box, or go with her brother, who was always so kind to her?

Already knowing what her choice would be, she began the climb out of the tree.

 

Jophiel sat on the threshold of the T.A.R.D.I.S, head in hands, and stared at a dewdrop hanging off of a blade of wheat, showing her the reflection of the blue box, warped and upside down. She had absolutely no interest in going to Disneyland, as, when she was small and wanted to go, Dean had given her a long talk about how the Disney Parks used its balloons and rides to brainwash small children, just like her, into doing their evil bidding. She didn’t believe it anymore, of course, but, just in case, she didn’t want to start off her adventures through time and space with getting brainwashed by the minions of Walt Disney.

Seeing movement out of the corner of her eye, she leapt up, knowing that she wouldn’t be abducted by a Disneyland employee without a fight. When she saw that it was a cloaked person, about her own height, she was a little bit disappointed, because she was prepared to shoot them with their own ray gun or something.

“Well then!” she said, extending her hand as the Doctor would for an old friend. “I’m not entirely sure who you are, or where I am, but it’s nice to see a friendly face, I think, amongst my numerous-” she stopped, coughing slightly. “Numerous adventures throughout time and space.”

The figure drew back their hood, glaring at Jophiel. “Nice to see _you_ again,” Mithya Pendragon smirked.

 

She almost hated to admit it, but Mithya was very glad to see Jophiel again. Sure, she’d gotten them lost and almost killed last time they met, but she was the only girl Mithya’s age that acted, and dressed, by the looks of her bare arms and legs, like a boy. Mithya had been constantly reprimanded by Merlin for this very same habit. She only desired to wear trousers and boots, and explore the forest without having to worry that she’d get dirty or ruin her clothes. This was too much for Merlin, who had heartily approved of such educational behavior, but knew that his husband would not. 

“What would your father say if they saw you covered in mud like a wild town boy?” her father would ask while viciously scrubbing at Mithya’s back with a sponge covered in the dirt from her body.

  “Well, I’d suppose he’d praise me for doing something interesting with my life other than poke at a piece of cloth with a needle or gossip about that mysterious _Freya_ character that father doesn’t know about and you never speak of,” she’d reply, smirking as she said it, knowing that the expression on Merlin’s face was one of utmost astonishment, judging from the increased speed of scrubbing on her back. 

Mithya knew how to spy without getting caught, which she used to her advantage in situations like those. She knew precisely when and where her father met up with Gaius to have their usual lunch together. They always discussed adventures of the past, ones that they never told Arthur, or anyone else, of. She had learned so many of these stories that she always had a good one prepared to tell anyone if they wanted to know. However, no one, besides Will, ever did. All of the girls of royal blood, whom she was forced to spend time with, ever wanted to talk about was young princes from visiting kingdoms and such. They had no time to consider the seemingly dreary past of their own kingdom,

And now, Mithya knew someone with an infinite amount of time, someone who was, well, almost exactly like herself. She had never really had a friend, besides Will, and to have a potential one thrust into her life so suddenly was slightly frightening. She scrutinized Jophiel, wondering if she could really be what she had been looking for. As if struck by inspiration, the other girl suddenly leapt out of the T.A.R.D.I.S, running into the surrounding field to pick some wildflowers. Eyeing the open doorway of the box, Mithya decided that this was as good a time as any to introduce herself to the frightening world of time travel.

Hesitantly stepping over the threshold, she shivered subconsciously with the power that ran through the air. This was like no magic she had ever experienced before. Staring, wide-eyed, at the enormous room around her, she wrapped her arms around herself to ensure that this beautiful place wasn’t a dream. She inhaled deeply, knowing that the air in the place was centuries old.

“Ah, are you...errr,” Jophiel called from behind her, apparently done picking flowers. “Will you be...joining me?” Mithya turned in surprise, because Jophiel sounded exactly as she felt; hopeful.

She tried a smile. “I would very much enjoy that,” she said.

 


	4. What On New Earth?

“So, how are we going to make this work?” Mithya asked as she followed Jophiel to the console.

“Well, I got here by standing _here_ and holding _this_ handle,” Jophiel pointed. “And then it just kind of...started.” And with these words, the engine kicked into motion, throwing the girls to the ground. 

Mithya clung to the railing, eyes squeezed shut. She vaguely wondered what was happening outside, picturing all of time and space hurtling by faster than she could ever imagine.

“The Doctor told me that when we travel, we go through the time vortex!” Jophiel yelled, seeming to read Mithya’s mind. “He said it looks like the inside of a bendy straw!” Mithya had absolutely no idea what a bendy straw was.

Finally, they stopped moving with an echoing boom. Mithya slowly opened her eyes, not knowing what to expect. Looking towards the door, she realized that, now, there was no commanding adult to tell her not to satisfy her curiosity. Well, except maybe Jophiel, who looked like she could win in a fist fight, but Mithya was the one with the magic, anyway. Running to the door, she braced herself to open it, nearly hysterical from the excitement.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Jophiel called from the console, where she stared at a screen that provided a view of outside. 

“And why on earth not?” Mithya laughed, pulling the door open with a jerk. 

A howling wind pushed her to the ground, caused by a speeding beast of some sort. From where she sat, she gaped up at the otherwise dark sky, lit by thousands of the flying metal creatures.

Jophiel bolted to the door and slammed it shut. “Because we’re not on earth, _that’s_ why.”

“What _are_ those?” Mithya asked, pulling herself up with Jophiel’s offered hand. 

“Well, you have magic, right?” Jophiel tried to explain. “These are like magic carriages! Except flying. And metal. And scary as all get out. They’re practically your cousins!” Mithya glared at her. “Well, distant cousins,” Jophiel said. “Anyway, I think we should go. This place might be too much for you. We can go bother Caesar, maybe!”

“Absolutely not!” Mithya replied indignantly. “This may be the only chance I get to do something interesting with my life!” At this Jophiel’s face softened, and her eyes took on the look of someone who knew exactly how she felt.

“As long as we don’t run headlong into traffic, then,” Jophiel chuckled, allowing the door to open.

They stepped out into the dark night, bracing themselves against the foul wind of the passing vehicles. Looking around, they realized that the T.A.R.D.I.S. had materialized on a metal walkway, suspended hundreds of feet in the air against the nearest building, similar to a sidewalk.

“I suppose this is us, then,” Jophiel said indicating the walkway. As they began the trek towards an open door in the building, Mithya looked over at her companion; filthy, nearly naked, and still soaked from the rain of another world

Mithya smiled. “You still have the wildflowers,” she said, pointing to the small bunch still clutched in Jophiel’s ring-laden hand.

“So I do!” Jophiel exclaimed. “I guess I’ll keep ‘em. Maybe they’re rare on this planet, and everyone will think that we’re goddesses.” She tucked one of the flowers in her hair, and then moved Mithya’s hood aside so that she could have one behind her ear. Mithya was shocked by the gesture. Was this a sign of respect where Jophiel came from?

“Or better yet, gypsies!” Jophiel cried, nearly falling off the walkway in her joy.

“You look more like a tramp to me,” Mithya giggled.

“Aye, and a thief as well!” Jophiel said, pulling the stolen key out of her overalls pocket and waving it in the air by its string. Mithya’s sides hurt from all her laughing, but she abruptly stopped as Jophiel gasped. 

“What is-” But her question was left hanging in the air, for the key had slid off of its string, and swung over the side of the walkway and into the dark abyss dotted with the flying vehicles. 

The girls crouched on the metal grate, clutching the edge and peering over as all hopes of adventure fell as neatly as the key. Jophiel sunk to the ground, curling up and moaning in defeat.

“Oh, Mithya, I’m sorry,” she cried. “I’m so, so, sorry. Now you’ll never get home! I don’t care much for myself, though. I got us in this situation in the first place, and I never want to see my fathers again, anyway.” 

Mithya patted Jophiel’s knee understandingly. “It’s all right. Maybe we can find the key!” Although Mithya had absolutely no intention of doing so. She was sure that _this_ magical place was where she belonged, with the sky always night, and so close to the stars. Once, she dreamed of getting lost in the forest and living there forever, just as her grandfather, Balinor, had done. Now was her opportunity, except now, the forest was metal.

She got up, casting a sympathetic glance at the mournful traveler, who had her face pressed against the grate. Walking over to the T.A.R.D.I.S, she tried the doors. Thankfully, they were locked.

“Well, we sure are gypsies now, eh?” Jophiel said, having sat up. Turning to look at her, Mithya choked back a laugh, because her friend had lines on her face from the pattern of the metal. “I say we start exploring this place. So far, I’m feelin’ a kind of ‘Star Wars’ vibe and I’m totally diggin’ it.” Once again, Mithya had no idea what she was saying, and wasn’t very eager to find out.

“Oi! You two! Need a lift?” an unfamiliar voice shouted. They swiveled to look, and were surprised to find one of the vehicles floating next to the walkway with a window rolled down and a mop of wild blonde hair sticking out of it.

“Is there a face under all of that hair?” Mithya whispered to Jophiel, who looked just as confused as she did.

“There’s only one way to find out, isn’t there?” Jophiel said, grabbing Mithya’s hand and making the leap into the now-open doorway of the car.

 

Jophiel blinked a few times, trying to adjust her eyes to the darkness as the door slid shut behind them. Settling into the seat provided she craned her neck to get a good look at the driver.

“I’d expect that you two are runaways, eh?” the mysterious person laughed. “Don’t worry, I won’t ask too many questions. I see enough of you lost lovers in the streets as it is.”

“Oh no, we’re no-” Mithya began, but Jophiel clapped a hand over her mouth and winked.

“Yep, madly in love, we are!” she shouted so loudly it made her speech very unconvincing. “My parents were getting terribly sick of she and I constantly mooning over each other and so they-OW!” Jophiel cried, yanking her hand away from Mithya’s mouth and cradling it, examining the mark left from Mithya’s spell. 

“What’s that?” the driver asked, turning in curiosity and still managing to not reveal their face. “Ah, the name’s Melody, by the way. But most people just call me ‘her again!’” And with a shriek of laughter, she slammed on what Jophiel assumed was the gas pedal, and somehow merged into the horde of vehicles.

It was a wild ride, to say the least. The girls had no idea where they were going, and they were beginning to doubt Melody knew, either. They swayed into oncoming traffic several times, and Jophiel had to shout and tap Melody’s shoulder, while at the same time enduring the death grip Mithya had on her hand, as she had never been in such a vehicle before. Jophiel couldn’t say that she could, either, but this was rather similar to Castiel’s driving.

Jophiel had lost track of time in the car, but she knew, when the car finally screeched to a halt, that it was too long. Mithya was looking faintly green, and she was sure her face matched. 

“This is the end of the line, lover girls! Make a left at the end of that alley, ask for Jatt, and you’ll be off from there!” Melody yelled, leaning out the window. 

“Thank you very much,” Mithya managed to mumble, in between spells to relieve her motion-sickness.

“Wait!” Jophiel called, just as Melody began to roll up the window. “Where _are_ we?” 

“That’ll be nine-hundred and second street, sweetie,” she said, and Jophiel thought that there might have been a wink in there.

“No, what _planet_ are we on?” Jophiel elaborated.

“So you’re the ones she’s been looking for!” Melody exclaimed. “This is New Earth, darlings. Toodles!” And the car sped away.

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d say that was River Song herself,” said Jophiel.

 


	5. Sassy Cat Ladies

“I cannot _believe_ that you still have those flowers!” Mithya sighed, referring to the slightly-crumpled bunch clutched tightly in her friend’s hand.

“Yes, and I’ll shove them down your throat if you comment on them again,” Jophiel snapped as they walked down the passage that would lead them to Jatt. “And I’m fairly sure that they’re poisonous.”

“How did you know that?” Mithya asked, shocked at the correct information coming from such an unlikely person. Her great-uncle, Gaius, had taught her much about various plants and their medicinal properties when she was young, but her adventurous spirit soon put a stop to that practice.

“Let’s just say that I have a _lot_ of free time,” Jophiel said, looking around for the left turn that Melody had told them about. “I’ve spent most of my life sitting in either the backseat of my dad’s car or in a dingy motel room. My dads feel pretty guilty about having to do that, so they steal library books for me to read and stuff, and let me use their laptop when they’re gone. I have an account using my fake name on nearly every social media account to date, and can hack into any software in less than an hour. When people say they don’t have a life because all they do is watch TV, I point and laugh.”

Mithya was getting tired of not knowing what Jophiel was talking about, but she, for the sake of friendship, decided to go along with it anyway. “What is your fake name, then?”

“Wesey Rinchtop, it’s an anagram, and don’t tell my dads, they’re majorly paranoid about this sort of thing,” she said, finally finding the turn and nearly sprinting down it towards the door at the end.

They gave the door several raps, taking turns knocking on it until they had a sort of song going. The door opened suddenly, bringing the musical knocking to an abrupt halt, as the woman who opened it was a cat.

Jophiel gave a small scream and reached for her boot, where Mithya assumed a knife was hidden. Grabbing her arm to prevent any violence, she gave the woman her most innocent smile.

“Yes, hullo, we’re looking for someone named Jatt, if you’d please,” she said in her most royal voice. Jophiel gaped at her, having never heard this side of her before. Giving her an exasperated look, Mithya followed the woman through the doorway.

They found themselves in a nearly pitch black corridor. Mithya could feel Jophiel reaching for her knife once again, but didn’t bother to stop her this time, as she was just as wary of this place as her friend.

“We’ve gotten ourselves into too many dark places lately,” Jophiel whispered close to Mithya’s ear, grabbing her hand as they followed the vague shape of the feline woman through the dark. Mithya nodded in agreement, and then, realizing that Jophiel couldn’t see her, recited a spell she had used many times. A tiny ball of flame illuminated her palm and the surrounding area, including their guide, who turned and hissed at them

“Turn that off! This hallway is usually not open to strangers, but since you know Jatt, you are an exception. There are some things that aren’t meant to be seen, warlock,” she said. Mithya shut off her light hurriedly, not wanting to be kicked out already. They continued on in silence, with not even a sarcastic remark from Jophiel to ease it. 

After far too long of the painstaking journey, they reached a wooden door, the first wooden object they had seen since the T.A.R.D.I.S. A strange violet glow emanated from around the edges, illuminating the girls’ curious faces. Without the cat woman even having to knock, it swung slowly open, creaking as it went.

“Jeez, we’re billions of years into the future, and they _still_ need WD-40!” Jophiel said with her nose crinkled in unsatisfaction.

“You sound so much like your father,” a soft voice said from within the glowing room. 

“Bloody hell, my dad’s not THAT old! Wait, which one are we talking about?” Jophiel remarked. “Because if we’re talking about the one that’s an angel, I‘m with ya there. But if you mean the sassy one, then that’s a completely different story. I think. He _is_ a time traveler.”

“Come inside, dear, and I shall explain,” the soft voice replied. Looking at the cat woman for confirmation, who nodded solemnly, they inched inside, squinting against the blinding violet light.

Immediately after they passed through the entrance, the light dimmed to a pleasant glow and the door creaked shut behind them, which Jophiel glared at. Not surprisingly, the woman who sat at the small wooden table, who must have been Jatt, had a feline face. Her robes were simple and violet, matching the light, and the  windowless room around her was reminiscent of old earth, complete with books and paintings.

“Sit, please,” she gestured to the two empty chairs at the table. “Would you like any tea?”

“Yes, please,” Mithya said, not knowing what it was but wanting to experience everything in this marvelous new place. Jatt used a china teapot to pour some into their waiting cups. Jophiel looked mildly curious as hers was poured, and wrapped her dirt-caked hands around it to take a sip, completely ignoring the small handle.

“Sweet _babies,_ that’s awful!” she cried, nearly spitting it out. “Once again, _billions_ of years into the future, and you don’t have any bloody sugar? I’ll take some coffee with lots of sugar, if you’ve got it.”

“Of course I do,” Jatt smiled. It wasn’t too long ago that your father visited me, after all, and you seem to take after him quite a bit.” Walking over to one of the wooden cupboards, she retrieved a plastic bag full of coffee. Jophiel gasped at what was written on it in Castiel’s pristine handwriting. _Castiel’s coffee. Please do not touch. This is directed towards you, Dean Winchester._

“I thought you’d be talking about the sassy one!” Jophiel said in surprise. Mithya had only met Jophiel’s fathers once, but she agreed with Jophiel that Dean was definitely the one she took after.

All this time, Mithya gently sipped her tea, pondering over its taste. She took a deep breath, feeling all of her worries about her latest adventure drifting off. The toll all of this time traveling business had taken on her had not been apparent until now, Now, as she watched in amusement as Jophiel glared at her tea, she felt completely relaxed and ready for whatever oddity would be thrown at her next.

Jatt came back to the table, having set up the coffee to be made. Sitting down, she smiled at the girls, not speaking at all. They stared back at her, the only sound in the room the gurgling of the brewing coffee.

Mithya coughed quietly. “We have been sent here by a woman who told us her name was Melody.” Jophiel flashed her a grateful look, relieved of the burden of starting a conversation.

“Yes, that is her name,” Jatt replied.

“But Jophiel told me that her name was River,” Mithya pressed.

“She goes by many names, but on this world, she is Melody,” Jatt said.

“What about you?” Jophiel asked. “Is Jatt your real name?”

“On this world, yes,” the cat woman responded. “But that is not what you are here for, is it?” The girls shrugged, as they weren’t clear on why they were there in the first place.

“Ah, you are unsure of your position here,”Jatt said knowingly, more of a statement than a question. She sat back in her chair, folding her hands in her lap. “Let me try and explain this to you without giving too much away. That is not my job. At least, not yet.”

She stood, moving to the coffee and pouring it into a small mug. “My role in many of the greatest hero’s lives is as a stopping point between journeys. I provide for them only their most basic needs, and they move on. Usually, I never see them again. They either die or forget about me.” She said this in such a matter-of-fact way that Mithya’s heart broke for her. She set the steaming beverage in front of Jophiel, as well as a small bowl of sugar and a spoon, which Jophiel ignored as she dumped the entire bowl in her coffee.

Laughing slightly, Jatt continued. “But you are young, which means many different things to many different people. In my case, it means you will come back.”

“Do we have a choice?” Mithya asked. She knew her question was borderline impolite, but she hated the feeling that her destiny was in the hands of another. She was reminded of Merlin’s stories of Kilgarrah, the Great Dragon, who was so mysterious it was infuriating in his prophecies for her fathers.

“Of course you do,” Jatt said. “But I already know what it will be.” Looking suddenly at a strange object on the wall that seemed like it could tell time, Jatt frowned and turned to the girls. “It is time for you to move on, young warrioresses. I bid you luck until we meet again”

And with that, the door opened, revealing their guide from before, and they were ushered from the light and into the dark.

 

 


	6. Cheeseburger-Like

“Bloody hell, I barely had time to finish my coffee!” Jophiel complained as she shaded her eyes against the bright street lights, groping for Mithya for reassurance. “And I’m positive that we didn’t come in this way, either. Can you use a spell thing to conjure up a map or something?” 

Mithya glared at her, arms crossed. “I could take you apart with one blow,” she threatened.

Jophiel winked at her. “I could take you apart in less, darlin’,” she said, not so much a challenge as a promise.

Mithya scoffed. “Dare you terrorize the daughter of a great king and an even greater warlock?” she said, cringing internally as she spoke. She had repeatedly acted like one of those terrible princesses that came to visit Camelot during this adventure. In her defense, she decided, Jophiel was most definitely asking for it.

Jophiel stopped in her scrutinizing of the nearby streets and turned to face her adversary. “I guess I do, seeing as both of them are dead right now,” she countered, unwilling to back down.

“I could say the same of _your_ fathers, then!” she replied, secretly thrilled at the chance to bicker without being reprimanded for acting too much like a boy. “Besides, my father, Merlin, can live for indefinite amounts of time.”

“Unfortunately, my not-sassy dad is kind of unable to die, because God keeps bringing him back. Which is bad news for me, because it means he’ll be hounding my great-great-great-grandchildren to see if they’ve brushed their teeth,” Jophiel sighed, turning back to the street.

Curiosity got the better of Mithya in the end. “How does that work, anyway? Are you able to spread your wings and fly about, then?” Jophiel smiled, grabbing her hand and pulling her through the entrance of what appeared to be a restaurant of sorts.

 

By the time they sat down at the table, laden with trays of exotic food, Jophiel was incredibly grateful that the T.A.R.D.I.S. had been translating everything for them. When they had arrived at the ordering station, she had confessed her fear of miscommunication to Mithya, who had comforted her with the fact that she could use her magic to translate if something went awry.

Another issue was the money. Jophiel had made a joke about selling her soul to get a cheeseburger, which Mithya enjoyed once Jophiel explained to her just how glorious a cheeseburger was. Shortly before getting to the front of the line, Mithya discovered a small satchel of coins in her cloak’s pocket, obviously put there by Jatt without them noticing. Jophiel found one in her pocket, too, and together they desperately tried to comprehend their value. After ordering some completely random items from the menu, one of which sounded vaguely like a cheeseburger, they asked which of the coins would pay for their meal, dumping all of them out onto the counter. The cashier had glared at them, and reluctantly pointed to several of the larger coins, which they quickly pushed towards her before hurrying away with their purchase.

 

“Ump ashg ggah kashha,” said Jophiel, mouth already stuffed with the dish that slightly resembled green meatloaf with bits of pineapple in it.

“Um, excuse me?” Mithya said, pausing with a lumpy looking sandwich halfway to her mouth. 

Jophiel swallowed, holding up one finger while she downed a glass of bubbling liquid to clear her throat. “Number one, that drink tastes suspiciously like white wine, so I’d suggest not drinking too much of it, judging from the stories I’ve heard about your father’s drinking problem.”

Mithya gave her a quizzical look. “Who, the warlock? Goodness, father loves a story which involves some sort of mockery towards him. I’d suppose you heard the one about how Merlin was nearly late to his own wedding because he was celebrating at the tavern? That’s a common myth, he was actually late because Leon tried to talk him out of it. Rather scandalous, really. Anyway, don’t believe a thing you hear about him, or you’ll be as bad as Leon.”

She was just about to take a bite of her sandwich when she stopped once again. “Besides, how do you know what white wine tastes like? _I’ve_ heard that there are laws in your time banning that sort of thing.”

“Ah, that,” Jophiel grimaced. “Once again, I have a _lot_ of free time, usually spent in empty motel rooms or in various bars for hunters. What can I say? I have a defined taste, probably inherited from ‘the sassy dad.’” She laughed, moving on to the next dish. “Anyhow, what I was saying before. Technically, I am impossible.” Mithya raised an eyebrow, chewing skeptically on a foot-long green bean. 

“Yes, I know. Terrible way to start an explanation on how I came to exist. Still, it had to be said. To start fresh, let me begin with the following: technically, I am impossible, but someone had enough determination to make me possible. Now, I’m not going to name names or point fingers, but I’m just going call the sassy one as the one who _really_ wanted to make me happen. The not sassy one will pretty much do anything for him, because they’re deeply in love and all that. So, he broke all of the rules. Trust me, ALL of them.”

Mithya leaned back in her chair, unwilling to try the steaming gray pudding but knowing she would break down and eat it all eventually. She took a deep breath, attempting to make room in her stomach but also pondering this information. “It’s the same with my fathers,” she replied. “Before their marriage, no one had even considered having two men rule the kingdom as lovers. They were scorned, slapped, plotted against, ignored, and pelted with fruit. But they persevered, and now, no one questions it! Also, I get to exist, which is very wonderful, if I do say so myself.”

“Holy cats, the heavens should take some lessons from the good ol’ folk of Camelot,” Jophiel said, now looking slightly pained with each bite she took. “But seriously, my father took every rule that had been put into place by God himself and snapped it neatly in two. You see, the offspring of angels and humans are called Nephilim, or Nephil, and they are forbidden in Heaven. Like, rejected and ignored and pelted with fruit, just like your dads. Most people thought that they came in the form of giants, but that’s a load of B.S. They’re pretty much just normal people, except they’re super strong and can fight angels and whatnot. Plus, their eyes get all glowy when they get mad.”

“So, are you one of them?” 

“Maybe. I mean, I can beat just about anyone in an arm-wrestling contest, but I’ve never been in a fight with an angel, except a verbal one. My dads wouldn’t tell me if I was, anyways. They don’t want anyone to find out and try to cut out my heart or something. That’s one of the reasons we have to keep moving. So that no one can find us.”

Smiling sadly, Mithya leaned forward and took Jophiel’s hand. “Well, if we’re going to be supernatural outsiders, let’s be it together.”

“Sounds like a plan, Stan,” Jophiel said, nodding her head enthusiastically.

Mithya abruptly let go of her hand. “My name is not _Stan_!”

Her friend stood, gathering their dishes and hiding a smile. “Whatever ya say, _Stan.”_

 

Eventually, Mithya was able to conjure up a map, but it was not using her magic, but rather, using the money provided for her. She was fascinated by the fact that she could actually understand and communicate with the vendors in their booths lining the busy street, and she dragged Jophiel to nearly every one, inspecting the goods provided. Jophiel, meanwhile, had other plans.

“Ooh, I think the alien boy over there was checking you out! He’s rather lanky, though, wouldn’t you say? Maybe that’s just his species type. I think my fathers are hoping that I’ll end up marrying some nice hunter girl, but after this trip, I’d be fine with an alien. I mean, that one’s _blue_! Just like in that James Cameron movie dad hated!”

“Huh. Do you think I should buy this flying paper crane?” Mithya asked, only half listening to her ramblings.

“Oh, absolutely. You could be like a pirate, except only moderately hardcore.”

As they pushed their way through the crowd after Mithya’s purchase, Jophiel finally found a shop that she was interested in.

“Hey! That looks like some sort of gypsy shop! I mean, we’re already gypsies, so it fits in pretty well with whatever theme we’ve got goin’ here.”

“Jophiel, that’s a fortune teller.”

“Eh, dad says those places are rubbish, he likes to make fun of them. Let’s go in, he’s not here to mock my life choices anymore.”

Jophiel was barely surprised when they had to go through a bead curtain to enter the business. Even on an alien planet, they had cliché tourist attractions. _I’ll bet they even have a Disneyland_ , she thought in disgust. 

“Hello?” Mithya called to the seemingly deserted room. It had a sort of rustic Asian feel to it, with multiple candles burning and colorful tapestries hung on the walls. The furniture was similarly colored, and very lumpy.

“Bleh, I’ve seen this getup too many times before,” Jophiel said indignantly. Mithya walked about the perimeter of the room, lighting unlit candles, eyes glowing with each spell.

Both girls jumped as a woman’s voice echoed from a dark doorway at the back of the room, concealed by a tapestry.

“You have come at last, I see,” she said, with a voice as old as the planet around her. “The reluctant princess and the lonely adventurer.” She stepped from the shadows, surprising them with her youth, as she looked almost younger than them. Her dress nearly blended in with the violet fabric of the tapestry, but her shockingly red hair brightly stood out, and her face was painted in an almost tribal fashion. “Yet, only a few know you as the warlock and the angel.”

Mithya could see Jophiel again reaching for the knife in her boot, but made no move to stop her this time. She was awed by the wisdom in this young woman’s voice, but wary of her knowledge. Who knew how many others had this information?

The woman’s face twisted in a smile, and only then did Mithya notice the faint traces of a scar beneath her face paint. Her eyes widened in disbelief, and she nearly fell as the magic in this woman suddenly enveloped her. Jophiel abandoned her knife and quickly slid a plush chair over to her, scowling at the woman.

“What did you do to her?” she yelled, knife out in a flash as soon as Mithya had sat down.

The woman didn’t even flinch. “I would suggest that you sit down as well, but I am partial to these chairs, and I have seen how your kind get when angry. So, you may stay standing.”

“Answer the bloody question, woman!” Jophiel screamed, and Mithya could see a dull gray glow coming from behind her irises. She wasn’t sure what had happened next, since she was overcome with the strong magic this woman possessed, but when she finally looked up again, Jophiel was frozen in a throwing stance and the woman was calmly holding the skinny knife by its blade.

“My name is Caspadra, but you may call me Casp, and I have been waiting for you two for billions of years.”

 

 


	7. Junk Gets Crazy

Jophiel had finally given in, exhausted with her rant, and now sat hunched in her chair, twirling her retrieved knife. She was thoroughly regretting having ever noticed the shop, and was infuriated by Casp’s calmness. She was in the mood for a _fight_ ,  dammit, and no one had stepped up to the challenge yet.

Glancing over her shoulder at Mithya, who was now looking more awake, she desperately hoped that this wasn’t _all_ her fault. She was grateful that Mithya wasn’t on the brink of death, but she also felt terrible for having brought her to the bloody gypsy woman in the first place.

“Now then,” said Casp, settling herself in the chair in front of them. “We’ve got all of this messy business out of the way, and now we may speak as the truth seekers we are.”

Mithya stirred in her chair. “ _What_ are we?” she asked, only a hint of weariness in her voice now.

It took everything Jophiel had to keep herself from yelling again. “Stop speaking in riddles, woman.”

“My name is Caspadra. You may call me that or Casp, but I do have one, angel,” she replied once more in the same exasperatingly calm tone.  “Warlock, to answer your question, the Children of Time are those who possess supernatural abilities, but choose to use them in ways which are beneficial to others. There are those, however, who choose to wreck havoc upon the Children of Time and anyone who supports them.”

Clutching the sides of her chair, Jophiel held back her urge to hit her head, or Casp’s, against a wall. _Children of Time?_ Could her life get any more Disney?

“This universe has been waiting for your paths to cross for too long. The fate of it depends on whether or not you will choose to help us.”

“What if I say _no_?” Jophiel said contemptuously, leaning forward in her chair and resting her elbows on her knees.

“That is entirely up to you, angel, but I-ahhh,” Casp interrupted herself, staring through the girls. Mithya and Jophiel looked at one another uneasily, fearing that she would do something drastic.

Casp’s hands had flown to her face, revealing painted eyes on the backs of them. She was murmuring in what seemed to be another language, but her voice gradually became louder and more comprehensible until they could hear entire sentences.

“And the child born of the sky shall choose the path of darkness, and forever live within herself as an echo of what she should be,” Casp cried, hands still over her eyes. “The child of the old religion shall condemn herself to a destiny which is not her own, and lose herself in the eternal abyss of the light. And so they shall live as one, never once able to regain what was lost, and trapped in what they have found forevermore.”

Jophiel had scrambled back up against the wall, terrified of the voice which was now coming from the girl’s painted mouth. If her voice before was ancient, this one was as old as the universe itself. Mithya had risen, trembling with the power that was coursing through her, transferring itself from Casp’s skin to her own. 

“Yet while the dark and the light surge and churn against one another until good and evil mean nothing, many more will rise against the dominant forces and show them the path to...to...” Casp faltered, her mouth turning down suddenly as if deeply saddened, and her hands slowly dropped from her face. She stared at the girls, her eyes brimming with tears.

Without warning, she ran to the small table next to the tapestry from where she entered. Pressing a hidden button on the side, she scooped a small iron box from the compartment that revealed itself and opened it, revealing two necklaces. Hurrying to the girls, she nearly tossed each one over their heads, blinking furiously as to not let the tears fall from her eyes.

“Run, run as fast as you can, heroes,” she choked out. “And remember me.”

Startled by this sudden display of emotion, Jophiel tried to console her, but was forced back by a strong gale emanating from around Casp. She barely had time to grab Mithya’s hand before they stumbled out of the bead curtain and into the street, propelled by the wind.

 

In the end, it was Mithya who let go of Jophiel’s hand. They had staggered to the nearest alleyway, where no one would disturb them, and sat side by side in silence. The words of the woman still haunted her, but Mithya was more concerned about the extreme magic that she possessed. When she finally let go of her friend’s hand, it was to stand up and lean her head against the wall.

“If that woman is telling the truth, and she _is_ on our side, then we have a powerful ally with us. She was _prophesizing,_ for goodness sake. I doubt that my father could do that!”

Jophiel, who was toying with the amulet that Casp had given her, looked up. “I don’t trust her, she was crazy. Did you see those mood swings? And how she was all uppity about having me call her ‘Casp’ but she didn’t even bother to use _our_ names? And what about these?” she said, holding up the necklace. “What if they have some sort of voodoo curse on it? I say we burn them.”

“No,” said Mithya thoughtfully, stroking the necklace. “I can’t feel any magic coming off of it. Which is strange, considering how much Casp had.”

“Even so, what about the freaky little rant she went on? And _why_ , for the love of all that is holy, not including my dad, did she have _eyes_ painted on the backs of her hands? I’m tellin’ you, Mithya, big time voodoo witchcraft crazy lady. I know it when I see it.”

Mithya sighed, rubbing her eyes with the backs of her hands. This was getting to be much more complicated than she’d thought it would be. What had begun as a fun adventure had all too quickly escalated into a disaster. There was absolutely no chance that she could ever get home, and now she had a prophecy to fulfill.

“What did she mean about us choosing opposite sides?” Jophiel continued, now standing up. “I seriously doubt that I would ever choose the dark side. I mean, I’ve seen enough movies to know how _that_ ends. Either I get my arms chopped off and thrown into lava, or I disintegrate, or I melt, or I have to watch sadly as everyone else gets free donuts.”

“And what about my fate? I’ve been told often enough by my dads that my destiny is mine alone to face, but just today, I’ve been informed twice that it is intertwined with another’s.”

Jophiel grinned and put her hand on Mithya’s shoulder. “Hey, if it’s my fate that’s stuck to yours, I’ll try to make it as un-sucky as possible, eh? Jeez, that’s something I’d never thought I’d hear myself say. Honestly, my life is slowly descending into the lowest levels of hell. Also known as a Disney movie. I swear, if someone bursts into song, I’ll set all of my dad’s ties on fire. And there’s a _lot_ of them.”

It was at this time, unfortunately, that a street band of short, bald, aliens started their performance, bellowing out a tuneless song while playing their squat instruments. Seeing the twitch beginning in Jophiel’s left eye, Mithya took this opportunity to find out what was at the end of the alley.

 

After squinting in astonishment at their surroundings for several seconds, they decided that things were possibly looking up.

“See, it’s a joke, because things are looking up in that we feel positively about our situation, and things are looking up in that the T.A.R.D.I.S. is now above us and we have to look up to see it!” Jophiel exclaimed, doing a little dance with Mithya.

“Well, this is absolutely magnificent, but how are we supposed to get up there?” Mithya asked.

There were apparently several layers of metal walkways lining the busy roadway where they first ended up. The T.A.R.D.I.S was situated on one near the middle, and they had somehow ended up on a walkway several floors below it, and on the opposite side.

Jophiel and Mithya sat on the edge of the walkway, feet dangling over the edge, to ponder their situation. Mithya gently cupped the flying paper crane that had been resting on her shoulder to prevent it from being blown away by the strong wind, and Jophiel gripped her withered flowers.

  Although Mithya couldn’t hear it, Jophiel was humming Metallica. She knew that it was against her moral standards, and that she had mocked her father’s taste in music many, many, times, but she _couldn’t_ get it out of her head. 

“Jeez, I wish that Hamish and Molly were here now. They’re absurdly good at getting into places they shouldn’t,” yelled Jophiel. This was a fact, as the pair had once gotten into a vault in one of the highest security banks in London. Their fathers had been examining a crime scene in the bank at the time, and had to bring their children along, as Mrs. Hudson was busy that day. They had been quite young at the time, so they were excused, but their fathers were hesitant to take them on investigations again.

“And I wish that Will were here now, so he could tell a bad joke and make us feel better,” Mithya said, stroking her paper crane as if it were a new pet.

“Hey, ya don’t need _Will_ for that!” Jophiel cried in disdain. “If there’s one thing that my sassy-dad has taught me about life, other than to shoot first and ask questions later, it’s that there is a bad pun for every situation.” Mithya simply raised an eyebrow.

Desperate for evidence to back up her statement, Jophiel looked around frantically. “Jeez, this is a _tire_ situation! Right? Because there’s no tires and it’s dire?” Mithya’s lips were pressed together.

“That wasn’t what I was thinking,” she said. “Will would have a better one.”

“In the name of- well what would _he_ say, then?”

“How should I know? _He isn’t here._ ”

“I’m just about ready to push you off of this ledge. Oh! But wait! I can’t, because your father is ‘the greatest sorcerer that ever lived’.”

“He’s a warlock. And _I_ could push _you_ off, since you have wings and all that, right? Oh, wait. I forgot, _you don’t have wings_.”

“Oh, real funny. Well let me tell you- oh hey! It’s the T.A.R.D.I.S. key!” And with that, Jophiel leaned too far forward and fell off of the ledge.

 

“I DIDN’T MEAN THAT LAST STATEMENT LITERALLY!” Mithya screamed in panic as she watched Jophiel fall, arms spread as if she really could fly. She was on her feet, pacing back and forth, wondering what on earth there was to do and becoming increasingly short on time. Miraculously, Jophiel was still falling, having narrowly avoided hitting one of the passing vehicles.

Suddenly knowing what she had to do, Mithya squeezed her eyes shut, stuffed the little paper crane in the pocket of her cloak, and leapt.

Wind that stank of exhaust whistled past her ears and her cloak flapped out behind her. She could just glimpse the astonished faces of the car drivers before they fell out of sight. She was catching up to Jophiel, who seemed to have accepted her fate and was now falling back-down, with her eyes closed and a look of serenity on her face. Mithya could have mistaken her for an angel.

Keeping her eyes open, she began chanting the words of a spell which she had read in a book without her fathers knowing a few weeks ago. She could begin to feel the rush of magic as the spell began to take hold, and she slowed down in the air. She was face to face with Jophiel now, so she grabbed hold of her outstretched hands. Her friend’s eyes remained closed, but she shouted over the wind.

“Crap. Dad, is that you?” 

“Um, no. Not exactly,” Mithya said, no longer having to yell as much, as they had stopped falling.

“Urgh. This is awkward. Thanks for saving me, Stan.”

“I hate you.”

“No, you don’t, because judging from the look on your face, I’m going to have to get us out of this. Aren’t I?”

“Yes. I’m in rather a lot of pain at the moment.”

Mithya concentrated all of her energy on getting them over to the wall. They slowly drifted over, where they lightly bumped until Jophiel extended her arm and grasped a small handhold.

“This is going to be awful. Float yourself onto my back.” She did as Jophiel asked, wrapping her arms around her neck. “You got any magic left in ya to help me out?”

She groaned in reply, feeling utterly spent. “Well, then. Here we go,” sighed Jophiel, and then they were off.

 

For a fifteen year old, Jophiel was strong. If she ever went to a normal high school, she could have joined the wrestling team and beat every one of them without breaking a sweat. Not that she wanted to, however. 

She was repulsed by most human boys after she had dated one for a short period at the age of thirteen. She was positive, at the time, that her fathers wanted her to be a lesbian, so she felt that this was the ultimate torture for them. It had turned out that this boy was possessed by a particularly nasty demon, and an epic battle of sorts ensued. Dean was able to exorcise it just in time, and she had the scars to prove it. After it was all over, the boy had laid on the ground, whimpering, and they had to lug him to his mother’s house, where they kicked him onto the curb and drove away very fast. 

She had received one of her many rings that night. It had been a gift from the boy while he was possessed. Dean was paranoid that it was cursed, but they had Sam examine it, and he declared it to be clean. She wore it on her pinky from then on, and Dean joked that it was a chastity ring.

Now, her acclaimed strength was being put to the test. She had never actually tried to use it, and she never paid attention when she did use it. She was able to carry heavy suitcases without a problem, and she was pretty good at push-ups, but otherwise, it was ignored. Mithya wasn’t very heavy, so that wasn’t a problem. The issue was that she was climbing a sheer wall, with only the occasional dent to use as a hand or foothold. 

She made a good pace nevertheless, and soon enough, they reached a metal walkway that jutted out from the side. Mithya seemed to be more awake now, so Jophiel nudged her. 

“I’m not sure if I could climb under this, and I can’t use my hands to bend the metal. Can you do it?” Mithya frowned in protest, but realized that Jophiel couldn’t see her.

She hummed, thinking of a way to go about this. She _could_ make the metal contract and explode, but that would send the shrapnel into their unprotected faces. That spell was the one that her father used to break locks, so Mithya was unsure of what to do next. It had to be a simple incantation, otherwise she would lose the little energy she had left.

Jophiel groaned. “Yikes, this is the longest pull-up ever. Got a solution, princess?”

Furious, Mithya’s arms tightened dangerously around Jophiel’s neck. “Do. Not. EVER. Call. Me. Princess,” she whispered in Jophiel’s ear, and suddenly, she knew what had to be done.

Eyes glowing gold, she recited the spell that Merlin had used once to get some shackles off of her. She and Will had been playing in the dungeons, imagining that they were prisoners. Will had locked them on to her ankles, and then lost the key. He’d had to run all the way up to the room where his fathers were having a meeting with a visiting king and describe the situation, as Mithya could barely walk due to the weight of the chains. Stifling his laughter, Merlin had melted the metal with an incantation that Mithya had looked up later.

Gazing up at the walkway, she waited for the metal to melt. “Um, I’m not sure why it isn’t working,” she said apologetically. 

“No rush or anything, but it is becoming increasingly difficult to hold on to this completely flat wall,” Jophiel said in between deep breaths.

“Yes, um, of course, let me try again.” Focusing on the grate, she tried again, this time almost yelling the words of the spell. “Yes! It worked!” The metal had begun to melt, dripping past them and into the abyss. 

It had barely finished dissolving when Jophiel reached up and tested the sharp edges with her hands. “You’d better have some magic left in you to heal me, warlock,” she meekly threatened as she pulled them up and on to the walkway, where they collapsed. Summoning the last of her strength, Mithya took hold of Jophiel’s bleeding hands and murmured a healing spell. Half-smiling, she watched as the magic stitched her cuts back together, and closed her eyes for a long-awaited rest.


	8. Oh Dang

Jophiel woke to what she believed to be a butterfly on her nose. She _hated_ butterflies. They reminded her of Mothra, who she had seen fight Godzilla at a very young age. She was terrified of it, because Dean had to admit that he hadn’t defeated either monster yet. It was the same with Bigfoot, or any other mythical creature that her family hadn’t killed.

Frantically batting the thing off of her face, she sat up, completely forgetting where she was and who she was with. She gave a little scream as she saw the unconscious girl in a heap beside her, and then realized that it was her companion, Mithya. Looking down at the creature she knocked off her face, she realized that it was Mithya’s crane. She set it on her face in the hopes of waking her up.

The warlock stirred as the crane fluttered around on her face, and opened her eyes. After blinking several times, she sat straight up. “Goodness!” she yelled. “I cannot _believe_ I got you out of that! You dollophead, what were you thinking, leaning so far over like that?”

“I was trying to get us out of this, you royal prat! It turns out that the future isn’t nearly as exciting as I’d hoped it would be,” she explained. “Gosh, we should really find that key. How long do you think we were out?”

“I don’t think that it was very long. Look, the metal is still melting a bit. How is this possible? I feel completely rejuvenated.”

“So do I! Hold on, look at my amulet. It’s glowing a bit. Yours is, too!”

“They must have magic, after all. Maybe Casp really is on our side.”

“I don’t know. I refuse to trust that witch. Oops, sorry. I meant that in the least stereotypical way possible. Wait, that’s the car I saw the key on! It had the same markings up the side!” Jophiel exclaimed, leaping up and pointing to the car. “Once again, never thought I’d be saying this, but we have to catch that flying car!”

Luckily, there was fairly heavy traffic that day, so the cars had fallen to an almost complete stop. “Now, we’ll have to navigate our way using my strength and your magic. The car is on the fourth line up from us and seven cars over, but we don’t want that number to increase, so we’ll have to move fast. You in?” Jophiel said, speaking fast and making rapid hand gestures. 

“I think so,” Mithya hesitantly said, not feeling very ready at all. 

“Good enough! Grab my hand,” Jophiel exclaimed, bracing herself to jump. “Wait, are you really ready? I mean, we can stay here forever if you’d like.”

“For god’s sake, Jo! I’m ready! I want to leave! Let’s go!” 

“Ah, yes. Well, I wasn’t quite-” And Mithya, fully willing to show just how prepared she was, swung Jophiel off the walkway. 

For a brief moment, Jophiel seized up in midair, surprised at the sudden flight. But then Mithya’s magic kicked in, and she was no longer falling, but floating. She reached out, one hand still in Mithya’s, and grabbed the exterior of the nearest car. Mithya kicked herself onto the roof, and then pulled Jophiel up after her.

As Jophiel stopped for breath, Mithya dragged her along again. “We’ve still got plenty more of these to go, angel!” she yelled over her shoulder.

“I am fully aware of the current situation, warlock!” Jophiel screamed as she nearly dislocated her arm  jumping to the next car.

They continued on like that, shouting insults to keep each other going, Jophiel scaling the cars and Mithya getting them to the next one. 

“Jesus, I think we passed the car!” Jophiel cried as they stopped for a short break. 

“No, you clotpole! It’s the next one over! And can you _please_ just call me Mithya?”

Jophiel rolled her eyes, and braced herself for the last jump. They landed with a thud on the roof of the car, shaking it dangerously. The key, near the edge of the car, began to slide off with the sudden movement.

“Not on my watch, buddy!” said Jophiel, snatching the string before it slid completely off. They exhaled in relief, panting on the roof of the hover craft as it slowly moved along in the traffic, seemingly oblivious to the extra passengers on its roof.

 

Somehow, without words, the T.A.R.D.I.S. greeted them like an old friend. Maybe it was because they had missed her so terribly, but her blue paint seemed to shine with joy at their touch, and her engine seemed to start with a happy purr as soon as they situated themselves at her console.

“That was some top-notch flying back there,” Jophiel said, leaning back in one of the seats that surrounded the console. 

“Actually, it wasn’t flying, I was just manipulating the wind,” Mithya admitted. “But that was some ‘top-notch’ wall scaling.” She put air quotes around Jophiel’s phrase.

“Actually, it was....wall scaling,” laughed Jophiel. “Cats, girl. I’m beginning to think that you were the inventor of sarcasm.”

“Then you haven’t seen my fathers when they argue. I’ve learned all of my greatest lines from them.”

“What, is ‘dollophead’ one of them? What does that even _mean_?”

“Two words. Jophiel. Winchester.”

“You prat. You stole that line, too, didn’t you?”

“Possibly.”

They were still giggling when they realized that the T.A.R.D.I.S. had come to a stop. They shared a nervous look.

Mithya got up. “Do you have any idea what’s out there?”

“No idea. But I must admit, I hope that it’s an empty mattress store. Then we can bounce on the mattresses until we collapse of exhaustion or the security guard finds us. That was my twelfth birthday. Good times.”

Filled with visions of adventure, the two raced to the doorway, yanking open the door in excitement.

“It’s..a bedroom,” Jophiel said in defeat.

“No, it’s MY bedroom!” Mithya said, running out of the T.A.R.D.I.S. and to the window. “And it appears to be just seconds after we left earlier.”

“Nice place,” commented Jophiel, strolling around, hands in pockets. “I like the decorations.” She sat on the enormous bed, bouncing up and down a bit.

“Thanks, I designed it myself. My dad but the spell on the flowers to always keep them fresh, but I did everything else.” The room was covered in boxes of paints, animal bones, old broken arrows, bird feathers, easels, and flowers. “I’m sure Freya will love it here, if Hunith, my cat, doesn’t get her first.”

“Who’s Freya?” Jophiel asked, laying back on the sheets and staring at the canopy with a tapestry woven onto it.

“My paper crane,” she pulled it out of her pocket and allowed it to fly around. “I’ll see if I can make more like her, so she won’t be lonely.” She looked over at Jophiel, who was tapping her fingers on the bedpost in a distracted way. “What is it?”

“Hm? Oh, nothing.” She rolled over onto her stomach, inspecting her rings.

Mithya climbed up on the bed next to her and began jumping. “I. Know. You’re. Lying,” she said in between jumps. Jophiel, being shaken all about, burrowed her head in a pillow. While continuing to bounce, Mithya made the pillow explode into a rain of feathers. Jophiel screeched in terror and tumbled backwards off of the bed.

She lay on the floor, a pained look on her face. Mithya peered over the edge of the bed. “I’m terribly jealous,” the angel-girl said with the tortured look still there.

“Of what?” Mithya said, after she reassembled the pillow.

“You.”

“ _Why_? Is it because I’m a princess? Because honestly, I hate it.”

“No, it’s just... your room. You have a place to decorate and stuff. You have a _home_. It’s hard for me to feel like I belong anywhere, since I’m always traveling.”

“Well, at least you get to go on adventures and _see_ places. I’ve never been out of Camelot. Well, before today.”

“Wow, really? That’s awful.”

“See, we both have upsides and downsides to our bizarre lives.”

“They ARE rather freakish,” Jophiel said, pulling herself up using the bedpost. “God, I wish I didn’t have to go.”

“Then don’t! Stay here! You can be my handmaiden.”

“Gee, thanks. The thing is, I kinda stole the T.A.R.D.I.S. I mean, she let herself be taken, but I have to give her back to the Doctor. Plus, I have a feeling that my angel dad would eventually figure out where I am and come get me. I think he only uses the T.A.R.D.I.S. to make my sassy dad feel better.”

Mithya fiddled with the fringe of the bedsheets she embroidered with pictures of wolves and trees. “I’m going to miss you,” she murmured.

Abruptly, Jophiel looked up. “Hey, I’m gonna miss you, too,” she said, rubbing the top of Mithya’s head.

Mithya hit her hand away. “I definitely won’t miss _that_!” she exclaimed.

“Oops. Sorry, my people skills are...rusty,” Jophiel apologized, pushing herself to her feet and brushing her dusty hands on her overalls. “I’d better be off, anyway, before I get too attached and start stalking your hot brother.” 

Laughing hysterically, she narrowly avoided Mithya’s swing at her as she dashed back to the T.A.R.D.I.S, which was blocking the doorway of the room. “Laters!” she cried as she slammed the door shut behind her and the blue box began its unearthly wail as it dematerialized out of Camelot.

Mithya barely had time to give a lamenting sigh for the loss of a friend when the door to her bedroom flew open. Will rushed in, frantically looking about. As soon as he saw her lying on the bed, he exhaled in relief. 

“Mith! I looked all over for you!” he pronounced. “Once I couldn’t find you anywhere in the forest, I panicked and thought you had been captured by bandits or something.”

“And so you came _here_ instead of rushing off heroically into the forest to save me? Will, I fear for the future of Camelot,” she said as she rolled onto her back and looked up at her masterpiece threaded into her bed’s canopy: a blue box woven into the deep greens of a forest, and in the distance tramped five children. One’s long dark curls bounced about their shoulders, one kept their hand on their sword at their waist, one stopped to examine a bird’s nest, one ran ahead of the others wearing rings that glinted in the sun, and one’s eyes glowed as gold as their hair.

 

“I have no idea why you’re loading those rifles, but they are completely useless at the moment,” the raggedy man in a bow tie attempted to explain to two frantic fathers. His arms rested on his knees, his head was bowed in defeat.

“You don’t know that, Doc!” Dean yelled, pulling aside the curtain for the fiftieth time, keeping his gun cocked and at the ready. Castiel paced the room, his eyes on his husband. “Something could have taken her, and the only reason I’m not out there stuffing it with lead is because of my respect for you. Now, I’d like an explanation, or that respect goes out _that-_ ,” he pointed. “-door, along with me.”

“I’m sorry, I’m so, so, sorry, but I have no idea why the T.A.R.D.I.S. allowed her to leave. She’s been acting strange lately, all-”

“Yeah, yeah. We’ve heard it before.”

“Dean,” Castiel said, placing his hand on Dean’s shoulder. “I’ll go after her. I can find her.”

“No, no,” Dean countered. “I don’t want you getting taken, too. I can’t be alone again. We’ll find her together.”

“But you need the-” the Doctor interrupted himself as he sat straight up in the musty motel chair. He couldn’t believe it. The engine of the T.A.R.D.I.S. was reverberating through the squall for the second time in that day. He rushed to the door, but Dean was there before him.

By the time they had unlocked it and thrown it open, Jophiel, sopping wet and regret on her face, stood on the faded “Welcome” mat that guarded the entrance. 

“Oh, you little-” Luckily, Dean never finished his sentence, as he had wrapped up Jophiel in a hug, oblivious to her current condition.

 


	9. Epilogue

The angels had been whispering for a while now. There had been no sign of the one called Castiel for many years. They had suspected that he was hiding something from them. They could have found out what, but they had no reason to. Until now.

They knew that Castiel had fallen in love with a human. A man, no less. An abomination within itself. They had dismissed it, as the man was mortal and would be gone soon enough. But if there was a child, that would be something different entirely.

The child would be a forbidden child. The child would have powers beyond human belief. If the powers were hidden well, however, the angels would have no reason to go after it. And they had been hidden well, for almost sixteen years.

In an ancient spell used to expel all angels from Heaven, the heart of a Nephil was necessary. No other had existed, since Jane. They were dangerous for this reason.

It had to be hunted, for this reason.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, yeah. Foreshadowing. When sweaterstiel first wrote this, it was intended to be a cute, one shot kinda deal. But my creative powers were too wild to be tamed, and I took this to the NEXT FREAKIN LEVEL.
> 
> So, yeah. Things get a little... not cute as time goes on.


End file.
